Track Listing

1. Black Unity

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #239699 in Music
• Released on: 1997-04-08
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Original recording remastered, Import
• Dimensions: .18 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Originally released in 1972, Black Unity declared Pharoah Sanders' arrival as a band leader and an arranger. An intensely rich and passionate recording, its spiritual leanings intimate Coltrane, but its sound is utterly Pharoah's. A glittering wash of koto, shakers, thumb piano and bells is underpinned by a double rhythm section. The rhythm section comprises the combined force of Cecil McBee and Stanley Clarke's acoustic bass lines, Norman Connors and Billy Hart provide the drums and forceful horn riffing comes from Carlos Garnett and Marvin Peterson. Joe Bonner provides concordance with spare gospel piano lines, and Pharoah Sanders' tenor soars over it all. This is percussive, organic, jazz that tells an arresting story over its 40-minute journey: it never blows itself to pieces like, say, Coltranes' extraordinary Ascension, and displays intensely satisfying dynamics, with a balance between free improvisation and thematic melody that has been rarely matched.--Neil Bennun

Customer Reviews

as good as Love Supreme ? certainly Essential jazz
the other review (may be five stars - so they got that right) but sells Sander's spiritual blast that is "Black Unity " (from 1971)- very short. i got lucky with this having hired it form the London Barbican library back in '99 and was already under the spell of John Coltrane's broadly similar spiritual 60's free/modal jazz also on the Impulse records imprint.

"Black Unity" is an incredibly powerful and intense ensemble recording thats combines african instrumentation in addition to the more typical jazz line-up and along with other personal favourites - the widely acknowldged classic from Coltrane "A Love Supreme" from '65,and "Africa/Brass" (from '61) and John's wife Alice Coltrane's "Ptah, the El Dhaoud" from 1970 (see my review also )and all on Impulse by the way - ALL amazed me and moved me, to learn of the "righteous" sound form across the atlantic.

INDESPENSIBLE "fire music".

Demo blast much...should have started clip at beginning
My friend loves this artist and says that this sound clip does nothing to attract one to this fab track....he says it actually starts quite mellow and builds up. He says that you should buy this one!